Interesting Festivals of the Indian Fishermen

Being a land of diverse and vibrant culture, India is full of travel experiences that can capture the attention of each traveler. Besides that, if a person is touring India for the first time, he or she is sure to find this place as a unique one. With so much diversity within itself, India is truly a place that is a comfortable treasure place for many exciting travel experiences. On the other hand, if a tourist is tired of visiting places to witness its beauty, then the rich Indian culture is there to ward off their tiredness with the festivals of the Indian fishermen. As mentioned earlier, each festival of India of different religions represents India’s vivid colors of diversity. For a traveler who is visiting India for the first time, this significant form of diversity is sure to attract him or her to the local culture.

In this context, it is quite important to mention that various Indian fishermen tribes and castes in India have their way of celebrating festivals. As these tribes are more close to nature, they are regarded as the worshippers of nature. A majority of their festivals depict the way in which they please the weather or the nature gods to seek blessings. One such tribe who are very close to Mother Nature is the fishermen tribe of India. These tribes are found in a majority of the southern coast of India. However, fisherman community is also located in the eastern, central and western parts of India. These fishermen tribes are known for their ceremonious approach to festivals.

Moreover, one can find a lot of religious faith in the Indian fishermen festivals. It is so because they celebrate so that the Gods would appease them. Since time immemorial, Indian fishers have celebrated different kinds of festivals with grandeur and colors. These festivals mainly happen during the onset of the monsoon. It is so because the Indian fishermen tribe usually pleases the weather Gods to bless them so that they can have a good catch season ahead of them. On the other hand, they also celebrate so that the Gods would bless them to return home safely. During these religious festivals of Indian fishers, many tourists flock these places to have a unique taste of rich culture. These festivals are succeeded by food festivals, and this is how it fascinates a loving food traveler. Here is the list of festivals celebrated by the Indian fishermen tribe.

Narali Pournima as the festival of Indian fishermen

It is a major fisherman festival of Maharashtra. However, it is also celebrated by another fisher folk in Gujarat, Goa, Kerala and other states. This festival is celebrated during the onset of monsoon. Quite interestingly, the day of Narali Pournima coincides with Raksha Bandhan. In this context, it is interesting to note that this festival by Indian fishermen marks the beginning of the fishing season and the end of the monsoon in Maharashtra.

This festival among the Indian fishermen community mainly takes place to boost their relationship among various groups so that they can stand in unity in case they would face dangers in a sea. By celebrating this festival, the Indian fishermen try to appease the weather Gods. Moreover, it is also a festival by the fisherman community who are determined to have a good catching season. They seek blessings so that the Gods would help them in achieving their desired target.

Quite interestingly, the period before the Narali Pournima is the regarded as the mating time of fishes. Hence, the fishermen usually do not venture into the sea during this stage as they consider it as a sin. In Narali Pournima, Coconut is being offered to the sea God so that he can provide safe passage to the Indian fishermen. Moreover, it is also an occasion in which the fisher folk offers prayers to the rain God. On the other hand, at the time of the Narali Pournima, the fisher folk repair their boats and usually decorate them with colorful garlands of a flower.

Meenu Habba

It is a unique fisher folk festival of the Indian fishermen that is celebrated at Karwar in Karnataka. Quite interestingly, thousands of villagers from adjoining areas come in huge numbers to witness this moral grandeur. About 75 tons of fish are caught during the festival that implies that the sea would continue to provide the fishermen with the good score. On the other hand, it is one of those festivals by the Indian fishermen that centers on the preservation of Mother Nature to have a sustainable development in the future. This festival of the Indian fishermen has a history of 200 years. The main festival of the Indian fishermen in Karwar takes place in the River Kali. This is the very reason that this river is kept out of bounds for fishermen for the rest of the time. Moreover, there is a temple of Goddess Gindidevi near the backwaters of River Kali. Care is taken not to catch fish in the main river but to find in the backwaters as the number of fish is maximum in the backwaters.

In this context, it is worthwhile to note that the fish collected here is being auctioned by the local Indian fishermen tribe in Karwar who usually sells them. Moreover, the money that is being generated from the sale is being kept at the local funds for charity purposes. Moreover, the money collected from the auction is usually used for temple repairing works. Moreover, during this festival, anyone can catch fish, and there is no cap on anyone. However, the participant has to offer half of the catch to the local Goddess to please her. So if a tourist is looking forward to having a worthwhile experience in the Indian fishermen festivals they also have to be adept at catching fish.